Hi everyone, welcome to my blog! I am a UK volunteer with voluntary service overseas and I'll be living in Rwanda in a small town called Nzige. Nzige is in Rwamagana district to the east of the country towards Tanzania.I'll be going out to Rwanda as an education volunteer to work on UNICEF's child friendly schools campaign. by teaching in a teacher training college and setting up a resource centre.

Tuesday, 14 June 2011

White coats, mice and general hysteria

Today I finally relented and conceded to teach my lessons in the TTC wearing a white lab coat. If you can’t beat them join them. I must admit I never saw the benefits of teaching lessons wearing a white coat unless you are a science teacher, but today I changed my mind and this is why. Once again I was wearing black because I think it makes me look slightly scarier and more intimidating to teenagers. And once again I ended up wiping white chalk all down myself and making said teenagers laugh so totally reducing my scariness. And then I had a eureka moment. If I wear a white lab coat the chalk will go on that and not my clothes!

Further to that I can pretty much wear what the hell I like and no one will see, so if I am wearing that t-shirt with bits of tomato and flour all over it for the third day in a row because I’m too lazy to do my hand washing then no one needs to know. And the final benefit of wearing a lab coat to teach in is that it has pockets to put things in. How very useful seeing as I never seem to wear clothes with pockets in any more.Now instead of thinking its bizarre I’ve come to see that teaching in a white coat is the best idea ever.

Now unfortunately the day took a turn for the worse in my Kinyarwanda lesson when a mouse ran through my door and round my house. There is nothing worse. Spiders, yeah whatever. Snakes, hmm...well don’t come to close but I’m not really bothered. But mice and rats make me want to hurl with their disgusting little tails, screwed up horrible thin faces and ability to run at you really fast. Well that was it, I couldn’t learn anymore. After chasing it round the house with a broom screaming my Kinyarwanda teacher realised that the lesson would never end unless she got rid of it so she did the deed. The trouble is I’m having nightmares about it coming back as there are gaps under all my doors. At least they can’t fit through mosquito nets J.